Painful muscle cramps: A symptom of liver cirrhosis?

Fred Konikoff*, Emanuel Theodor

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

52 Scopus citations

Abstract

We found an 88% incidence of painful muscle cramps in 33 patients with cirrhosis, as compared to 21% in a matched population without liver disease. The cramps were characterized by severe pain, occurred in calf muscles several times a week (mainly at rest or during sleep), and lasted for a few minutes. No definite etiological factor could be found and the underlying pathophysiology remains obscure, as in most other types of muscle cramps. However, the strikingly high incidence and uniformity of the phenomenon may justify the inclusion of painful muscle cramps among the recognized symptoms of cirrhosis.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)669-672
Number of pages4
JournalJournal of Clinical Gastroenterology
Volume8
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 1986

Keywords

  • Liver cirrhosis
  • Muscle cramps

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